Improved insole for boots and shoes



UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

JOHN K. GITTENS, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

IMPROVED INSOLE FOR BOOTS AND SHOES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 49,8711, dated September 12, 1865.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, J oHN K. GIT'IENs, of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Insoles for Boots and Shoes; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable others skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

The most desirable material to use for the insoles, so called, of boots and shoes is, as is well known, sheep-skin, with a sufcient amount of its Wooly exterior left upon it to impart warmth to the foot 5 but the most serious and heretofore insurmountable obstacle and objection to its use has resulted from the effect of moisture upon it by the perspiration of the foot, which causes it to wrinkle and stiffen to such a degree as to render the insole in a short time unt and uncomfortable to be Worn.

To remedy this objection is the object of the present invention, and is satisfactorily accomplished thereby, it consisting in coating, in any proper manner, the inner side or surface of the sheepskin with a suitable enameling or protective composition, whereby not only is the skin prevented from wrinkling or stiifening, but it is also rendered impervious to moisture, either from the perspiration of the foot or from the penetration of water through the leather or other material of which the boot or shoe is made.

In accompanying plate of drawings my improvement is illustrated, Figure 1 being a view ofthe enameled or coated side of thcsheep-skin insole, and Fig. 2 an edge view of the same.

a a in the drawings represent an insole cnt out in the proper shape from sheep-skin, with a sufficient quantity of wool, l), left upon its outer surface, c, to impart the necessary or desired warmth to the foot when worn. The inner surface, d, of the insole a is coated or otherwise covered with an enamelin g or other suitable protecting composition, made of any of the ordinary ingredients used for enameling, for and throughout its whole extent, as plainly represented not only in Fig. 2 by a heavy black line,f, but in Fig. l by a surface of black color, g, which enameling composition may be applied to any degree of thickness desired and necessary. By thus coating the inner surface of the skin with an'enameling composition not only is its wrinkling and stiifening prevented, but it is rendered impervious to moisture, the advantages of which are manifest to all persons.

I claim as new and desire to secure by Let- 

